Benguela Mud MPA

"Magic Mud"

West of Saldanha Bay, Western Cape

The least trawled stretch of muddy seabed on the west coast.

At 72 km2 this is the smallest offshore MPA in South Africa and was proclaimed in 2019. The muddy habitats located in this area are created by sediment washed down the Orange River and out to sea. These mud habitats are of limited extent and are critically endangered on South Africa’s deep continental margin of the west coast.